Salary Sacrifice Calculator
Enter your salary and the amount you want to sacrifice. See the income tax saved at your marginal rate, the 15% contributions tax inside super, and whether the trade-off improves your overall after-tax position.
- ATO-based tax rates
- Instant results
- No sign-up
- Private by design
Your salary and sacrifice
All figures are before tax.
All calculations run locally in your browser.
Net tax advantage
$15,000 sacrificed at a 32% marginal rate
- Tax saved
- $4,800
- 15% super tax
- $2,250
- Take-home
- −$10,200
Yearly breakdown
AUD- Gross salary
- $120,000
- Salary sacrificed
- −$15,000
- Taxable salary
- $105,000
- Income tax + Medicare before
- $28,920
- Income tax + Medicare after
- $24,120
- Take-home before
- $91,080
- Take-home after
- $80,880
- Employer super before
- $14,400
- Employer super after
- $12,600
- Total concessional contributions
- $27,600
- Contributions tax (15%)
- $4,140
- Division 293 extra tax
- $0
- Excess contributions tax (est.)
- $0
- Net super boost
- +$11,220
- Overall cash + super change
- +$1,020
Concessional cap
Within capYou have $2,400 of cap space left this year.
The cap is $30,000 and includes employer super guarantee, salary sacrifice and personal deductible contributions.
Estimate only. Super tax is paid by your fund, not deducted from take-home pay. Check your fund, employer and the ATO before changing your arrangements.
How salary sacrifice works
Salary sacrifice is an agreement with your employer to give up part of your future salary in exchange for an additional employer super contribution. The sacrificed amount is paid into your super fund before income tax is calculated, so it reduces your taxable income and the tax withheld from your pay.
Income tax saved = sacrifice × (your marginal rate + 2% Medicare levy)
Contributions tax = sacrifice × 15%
Net tax advantage = income tax saved − contributions tax
The money is not tax-free. It is taxed at 15% inside the super fund instead of at your marginal rate. Salary sacrifice is generally worth considering when your marginal rate is above 15%, because you are swapping a higher tax rate for a lower one. The larger the gap, the bigger the benefit.
Unlike a personal deductible contribution, salary sacrifice is arranged through your employer and reduces your salary before PAYG withholding. That means your regular take-home pay falls, but the super contribution is made each pay cycle. You generally cannot salary sacrifice money you have already earned, and some employers limit the arrangement to certain pay items or review dates.
Tax saved vs the 15% super contributions tax
The headline comparison is simple: income tax saved at your marginal rate versus the 15% contributions tax. For someone earning $120,000 in 2026–27, the marginal rate is 30% plus the 2% Medicare levy, so each dollar sacrificed saves 32 cents of income tax. A $15,000 sacrifice therefore saves about$4,800 in income tax. The contribution tax is 15% × $15,000 = $2,250, leaving a net tax advantage of$2,550.
| Taxable income | Marginal rate incl. Medicare | Tax saved per $10,000 | 15% super tax | Net advantage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $18,201 – $45,000 | 17% | $1,700 | $1,500 | $200 |
| $45,001 – $135,000 | 32% | $3,200 | $1,500 | $1,700 |
| $135,001 – $190,000 | 39% | $3,900 | $1,500 | $2,400 |
| Over $190,000 | 47% | $4,700 | $1,500 | $3,200 |
Before Division 293. If your income plus concessional contributions exceeds $250,000, an extra 15% tax can apply, reducing the advantage substantially.
The comparison also ignores the effect of losing employer super guarantee if your employer calculates super on post-sacrifice salary. That is why the calculator includes both assumptions. In a typical arrangement where the 12% guarantee is paid on the reduced salary, part of the sacrifice simply replaces super you would have received anyway, so the net super boost is smaller than the amount sacrificed.
Concessional caps and Division 293
Concessional contributions include employer super guarantee, salary sacrifice and personal contributions you claim as a deduction. The general cap is$30,000 for 2026–27. If you have a total super balance below $500,000, you may be able to carry forward unused cap amounts from up to five previous years, which can allow a larger contribution without exceeding the cap.
Contributions above the cap are generally added to your assessable income and taxed at your marginal rate. The fund has already paid 15% contributions tax, and you receive a non-refundable offset for that tax. The result is usually a higher effective tax rate on the excess, plus a possible excess concessional contributions charge. The calculator warns you when the combined contributions exceed the general cap, but it does not calculate the final excess tax.
Division 293 applies an additional 15% tax on concessional contributions when your income for surcharge purposes plus concessional contributions exceed$250,000. If you are close to that threshold, a sacrifice that pushes you over can be taxed at 30% inside super rather than 15%. In that case, compare the combined 30% rate with your marginal rate before deciding.
Does salary sacrifice reduce employer super?
The super guarantee is generally calculated on ordinary time earnings. If your employer uses the post-sacrifice salary as the base, the 12% contribution falls when you sacrifice. Some employers instead use the pre-sacrifice salary or a notional salary, so the guarantee is unaffected. There is no single rule for every workplace, and the treatment should be set out in your contract or salary sacrifice policy.
The difference matters. On a $120,000 salary with a $15,000 sacrifice, 12% of the reduced $105,000 salary is $12,600, compared with $14,400 on the full salary. That is $1,800 less employer super. The sacrifice still adds $15,000 to super, but the net increase is only $13,200 before contributions tax rather than $15,000. Use the “Super is paid on” selector in the calculator to model your arrangement.
If your employer does reduce the guarantee, you may be able to negotiate a higher sacrifice or a different arrangement. It is also worth checking whether the sacrifice affects other entitlements, such as overtime, penalty rates, leave loading or redundancy pay, because those can be based on ordinary pay.
Salary sacrifice examples
| Salary | Sacrifice | Marginal rate | Tax saved | 15% super tax | Net advantage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $80,000 | $10,000 | 32% | $3,200 | $1,500 | $1,700 |
| $120,000 | $15,000 | 32% | $4,800 | $2,250 | $2,550 |
| $160,000 | $20,000 | 39% | $7,800 | $3,000 | $4,800 |
| $220,000 | $20,000 | 47% | $9,400 | $3,000 | $6,400 |
Assumes the employer super guarantee is unchanged, no Division 293 and no other income or deductions. The net advantage is the income tax saved minus the 15% contributions tax on the sacrificed amount.
To compare salary sacrifice with putting extra money into your own super, use the super projection calculatorto see how contributions can grow over time. If you are negotiating a pay rise, the pay rise calculator shows the after-tax value of the extra salary before you decide how much to sacrifice.
Questions
Salary Sacrifice Calculator FAQs
Quick answers about how this calculator works and what it includes.
How much tax do you save by salary sacrificing into super?
Your taxable income falls by the amount you sacrifice, so you save income tax and Medicare levy at your marginal rate. That saving is then compared with the 15% contributions tax paid inside super. A $15,000 sacrifice for someone on the 32% marginal rate (30% tax plus 2% Medicare) saves about $4,800 in income tax and pays about $2,250 in contributions tax, for a net tax advantage of roughly $2,550.
Is salary sacrifice worth it at a 15% super tax rate?
It is usually worth considering when your marginal rate is higher than 15%. The bigger the gap between your marginal rate and 15%, the larger the tax advantage. For someone on the 17% marginal rate (15% tax plus 2% Medicare), the advantage is small. For someone on 32%, 39% or 47%, it is much larger. Other factors such as the concessional cap, Division 293 and your employer’s super guarantee also matter.
Does salary sacrifice reduce employer super contributions?
It can. Many employers calculate the 12% super guarantee on ordinary time earnings after salary sacrifice, which means sacrificing reduces the employer contribution. Some employers use the pre-sacrifice salary instead. This calculator lets you switch between the two assumptions, because the difference can be thousands of dollars over a year.
What is the concessional contributions cap for 2026–27?
The general concessional contributions cap is $30,000 for 2026–27. It covers employer super guarantee contributions, salary sacrifice and personal deductible contributions. If you have unused cap from previous years you may be able to carry it forward, subject to eligibility rules. Contributions above the cap are generally included in your assessable income and taxed at your marginal rate, with an offset for the tax already paid.
What is Division 293 tax?
Division 293 adds an extra 15% tax on concessional contributions for people whose income plus concessional contributions exceeds $250,000. It is designed to reduce the tax concession for higher-income earners. If Division 293 applies, the benefit of salary sacrifice can be much smaller than the simple 15% comparison suggests.
Does salary sacrifice affect take-home pay or HELP repayments?
Salary sacrifice reduces your reportable salary for PAYG withholding, so your regular take-home pay falls. It can also reduce income-tested obligations such as HELP repayments, Medicare levy surcharge and some family assistance, because those tests use different income definitions. This calculator estimates income tax and Medicare only, so check the specific rules for your situation.
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